Marco Rubio won’t say whether he smoked pot. Why not?

In an interview with National Journal on Monday, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) was asked whether he had ever smoked pot. Here was his answer: "If I tell you that I haven't, you won't believe me. If I tell you that I did, then kids will look up to me and say, 'Well, I can smoke marijuana, because look how he made it.'... At this point, it's irrelevant."

A fully budded marijuana plant ready for trimming is seen at the Botanacare marijuana store ahead of their grand opening on New Year's day in Northglenn, Colorado, in this December 31, 2013 file photo. REUTERS/Rick Wilking

So, if Rubio has smoked pot at some point in his life -- and we have no idea if he has -- why not own it? This poll -- via the Pew Research Center -- might explain why not.

Image courtesy of Pew

One in three Republicans said they would be less likely to back a candidate who has used pot in the past, while just 2 percent said they would be more likely to support that candidate. Six in 10 said it wouldn't make any difference in how they would vote. Interestingly, marijuana usage is a far bigger negative in the eyes of Republicans than is being divorced. (Just 16 percent of Republicans said a past divorce would make them less likely to support a candidate.)

Now, the poll was conducted in early 2011. And, as you can see from the Gallup numbers above, opinions about pot are changing fast. But, taken at face value, what the numbers suggest is that while people are far more willing to legalize marijuana and even admit they've smoked it, Republicans at least don't love the idea of a candidate who has done the same.

From Rubio's point of view then, admitting anything -- if there is anything to admit -- doesn't make much sense. While he drew some headlines for his non-comment comment to National Journal, it was a one-ish day story. If he had admitted to smoking pot, it would have likely been a multi-day story that, if the Pew data are to be believed, would have made some not-insignificant group of Republican voters less inclined to vote for him.